A look inside the high school rap game at North Nova Education Centre

Lil Keefe rakes in views that fluctuate from about 50 to upwards of 339,000. - Contributed

By Kent MacDonald

Special to The News

When you walk into NNEC, you see a normal high school doing normal high school things, right?

But what lies much deeper is an underground rap game that is taking over.

Most of the content of the raps are lyrical assassinations towards each other (called diss tracks). Diss tracks are where two people take turns insulting one another (all in good fun) in a song; typically, one person releases a diss track first and then another person follows up with one. Most of these songs are created and produced outside of school.

The quest for fame, fortune and clout seems to be an endless struggle for many high school students, including me and my buddy John Luke Taylor, who decided to make a song about NBA rookie Trae Young, which we put on Spotify and SoundCloud. However, there are some masterminds that are making a very large impact in the scene.

Most notably, Keefe Farrell, whose alter ego “Lil Keefe” is breaking barriers and boundaries in the rap game. I was given the opportunity of asking the guy a couple of questions regarding both the current point of his career and his goals for the future.

“I was inspired by what XXXTentacion created and the way he went on about how he did his rap, so I was like, ‘you know what, I want to be the next XXXTentacion,” said Farrell when asked about his ambitions on pursuing a professional rap career.

“I think it was just the way that I made them and the beat I used and the way I had my flow going.”

Lil Keefe rakes in views that fluctuate from about 50 to upwards of 339,000. Lil Keefe has a setup at his home, using his computer with recording software he bought, along with the mic that sits on his desk that he uses. He has not been signed by a record label, but who knows what the future has in store.

Lil Keefe started rapping in December 2017 when he released his first song Audis, which blew up, getting more than 2,000 views.

“I started making them and grinding them and now I have about four or five albums on SoundCloud,” he said.

When asked why some of his songs blew up more than others, he said, “I was like, ‘yo this is fire’ and I knew that this was gonna connect with my fans, I got to make sure all of my music is Gucci.”

Lil Keefe makes all of his music on SoundCloud right now because he is currently in the market for a producer.

“I don’t think anyone stands in my way; I consider myself the hottest rapper in this county, I’m calling y’all out,” said Lil Keefe, when asked about challenges to pursuing the rap game.

Nova Scotia has not historically been a hotbed for rap music, but Lil Keefe considers himself a trendsetter. He thinks there are a lot of upcoming rappers trying to be him.

“I be showing them who does it and how it’s done,” said Lil Keefe.

His parents are very supportive of his craft and they want him to follow his dreams. He looks up to XXXTentacion the most but he does have other rappers he listens to such as: Tupac, NWA, Lil Pump and A Boogie wit da Hoodie.

“You just gotta do what you gotta do for ‘da boys, keep the grind going.”

Kent MacDonald is a student at North Nova Education Centre who is currently working at The News as part of a course for school.